This is my V-Day present for ukelicious. Hope you're happy, hoe. It was a bitch to write. I must have made revisions 500 times. And I have this nagging feeling that I butchered the characters. Sometimes when I'm thinking "FFFF, in character!", my hand completely ignores me and writes fanservice. So I'll warn here for potentially nonsensical stuffs ahead. xD

***The formatting screwed up a bit after I posted it, but I don't feel like fixing it.

Warning: Contains YAOI, as in Male + Male relationships, as well as YURI, as in Female + Female relationships. If you don't like it, DON'T READ.

Spoiler Warning: Contains references to Farewell, My Turnabout, the last case from Justice for All, and a key character from that case appears here.

Pairings: Miles/Phoenix & Franziska/? (it's not hard to tell WHO it is, especially considering what I just said, but stfu. I want to keep you in suspense anyway. xD)

Disclaimer: I do not own Ace Attorney or its characters. I just like to play with them. :D

Franziska von Karma had never been as lost for words as she was at the moment. She stared at the small, heart-shaped box she now held in her hand, not sure how to react, what to say. She'd never encountered a situation anything like this before.

Her father had never loved her, he'd shown her that much when he beat her within an inch of her life when she was 8 years old. She couldn't quite remember what the punishment had been for, but it was something trivial, she was sure. The one and only thing she could thank that man for was making her the strong, independent woman that she grew up to be. Her skin was thicker than most thanks to what he put her through. And it was after that encounter that she took up the whip.

But this… this was strange. She looked down at the box, then up at the one who'd pressed it into her gloved hand a moment before... Well, pressed into her hand wasn't really the right way to describe what had happened. It'd practically been thrown at her. She knew she should say something, but she hadn't a clue what. Her face contorted as she weighed her options. This was so much harder than it seemed.

She was taught to believe that affection and emotion were foolish and unnecessary. But when faced with them head on like this, it gave her pause. It was the first time in her life when she was honestly unsure how to react to something. Her perfect control had been taken, and it was quite a frightening prospect.

It had all started when she returned to America, at the request of Miles Edgeworth. He'd said something about running into a bit of trouble he hoped she could help with. So she hopped on the soonest flight she could, the management falling over themselves to bump someone off the plane at the crack of her whip.

The February chill was but a slight drop in temperature in Los Angeles, so she'd decided to go along with it. If there was one thing she hated, it was cold weather. At the beginning of every year, she whipped the winter months straight out of her calendar, believing that maybe if she got rid of them there, they would cease to exist in reality.

Sadly, it never happened as she planned, and she stayed holed up in her flat for nearly the whole season, poring over her law books to keep her mind sharp. After all, she was good enough at what she did to take a brief respite.

The sun had nearly set by the time the plane touched down, but she had no interest in the sight, grumbling to herself about the fools gluing themselves to the window to look. She kept her whip in hand throughout the trip, despite the initial protests of the flight attendants, who, like their bosses before them, quickly fell in line when a sharp CRACK bit the air. Another CRACK after touchdown convinced the prosecutor's fellow passengers to clear a path so that she could exit unhindered.

A tall, thin figure in a wine red suit came into view at the baggage carousel, a slight frown set in his features. CRACK! Her whip bit the air, causing everyone in a thirty foot radius to jump, except her companion. She smirked. It seemed that he'd stayed sharp after all. "What's with that sullen look, Miles Edgeworth?"

"Good afternoon, Franziska." The older lawyer replied simply, his tone being a good match to his expression. "It's nothing at all, I'm just very tired. I was up until the early hours this morning due to the stress." He heaved a long sigh as she picked up her bag.

Franziska shook her head. So it wasn't that he was sharp, it was that he was tired. She'd given him too much credit. "I see my foolish baby brother is useless without me, as always." The prodigy teased as they started to walk out of the airport. "So, Miles Edgeworth, what is this problem you've called me across half the world to help you with?"

Edgeworth shook his head. "I don't want to talk about it in public, if you don't mind." He raised a hand to rub his temples.

The young prosecutor shook her head. "I'm here on your dime, Miles Edgeworth, so you take as long as you damn well please, it doesn't bother me a bit." She replied, waving her hand as they climbed into the other's red sports car.

It turned out Miles had hired a driver for the day because he didn't trust himself to drive in his state. She amused herself on the ride by whipping the back of the driver's head. Miles simply shook his head, glad that it wasn't him.

He paid the driver and ascended the stairs in front of his four-story mansion, unlocking and opening the door with a sigh. "Please excuse the mess…" He started to say, as the younger prosecutor charged in and promptly whipped him in the back for not keeping everything in perfect order. He blinked at her wearily, too tired to feel the pain.

"Disgraceful, Miles Edgeworth. One can only imagine what foolish tomfoolery you've been getting up to here… I should bite you again just for good measure. Mein gott." Miles shook his head slowly behind her back. Now that she'd started, it'd be a while before he could get a word in again. He passed into the kitchen, barely hearing her rants, and poured two cups of earl grey tea.

By the time he'd settled himself on the sofa with his cup, she was winding down, and had taken her own. "May I speak?" He asked gently, the tea seeming to stir him to life. When no response came, he continued. "You may have noticed the date…"

"Saturday, February the 13th." She answered, with hardly a pause.

"Yes, thank you." The older lawyer set his empty cup down on the coffee table. "Which means, for normal people, Franziska, that today is the day before Valentine's Day."

"And this concerns me how?" The prodigy shot back, crossing her arms. "I have no care or interest in that foolish, commercialized lovers' holiday."

Miles sighed deeply again. "Listen, Franziska, since you're not seeming to grasp what I'm trying to say, I'll just tell you bluntly." He leaned back. "I've called you here to help me because, now especially, I am at my wit's end. I was busy with a case investigation recently, and forgot that the holiday was coming up. And now I have a severe dilemma. In short, I don't know what to get for Wright. The man is impossible to buy for, because he loves EVERYTHING. And quite obviously, I'm running out of time."

Franziska sat in silence for a few moments, blinking slowly. "That's it? That's your 'big problem', Miles Edgeworth? What world do you live in where such a petty, foolish thing is considered a 'big problem'? You have got to be kidding me. And SINCE WHEN were you involved with Phoenix Wright?! I suppose that accounts for how foolish you've become since I've been gone!"

"…that's not the question I expected, but, Wright and I have been in a relationship since I 'came back from the dead', as he puts it." He rolled his eyes before continuing. "I wouldn't have called you for help, Franziska, but you're the only woman I know, and despite appearances, you're young. God knows that Wright is young at heart. I thought you'd be the best person to turn to. I would have asked Gumshoe, but… obviously he's not the first person you'd think of when these things come up."

He froze temporarily when the other shot a glare straight through him at the mention of the bumbling detective. "…and as of the time that I called you, he was unavailable. I believe he may have mentioned something about taking Ms. Byrde on vacation for the weekend."

"I pity you, Miles Edgeworth, when I, a woman that knows absolutely nothing about any of this, am your last resort. I don't know what you expect to do, when there are mere hours left to procure a gift. And why, knowing that that fool Gumshoe had done it, didn't you try to take Phoenix Wright somewhere?" The young prosecutor rolled the handle of her whip around in her hand, not believing she was going along with this.

"I tried. Of course, everything is booked up and has been for months." He shrugged. "But when it comes to buying something, money is no object, especially at this point."

"Oh, of course, foolishly famed prosecutor of the West." She teased again. "However, a lot of good your foolish money is going to do when there is nothing TO buy."

The older groaned and rubbed at his tired eyes. "There has to be something…"

"Might I suggest, oh high and mighty 'King of Prosecutors', that if you feel you have exhausted all of your options, you MAKE something for Phoenix Wright?" Franziska offered, still turning her whip in her hand.

"Like what, though?" Miles poured another cup of tea. "I'm not good at making things, really."

The woman shrugged and waved her hand. "I don't know, like cookies, or a hat to contain that foolish hairstyle of his. I know that you knit, Miles Edgeworth, and you're decent at it. Not terrible, anyway."

Edgeworth couldn't hold his laughter in. "I couldn't imagine Wright with a hat."

"It is hard to visualize." The younger conceded. "Well, Miles Edgeworth, from what I've observed, one can't go wrong with a box of chocolates. Some foolish saying about the thought meaning more than the actual gift." She shrugged again.

"Hm… it's so simple that I didn't even think about it. He is always complaining when I buy him 'expensive' things…" He nodded slowly. "It just might work… I'll try it, at least." He rose. "I'll go to the store now. Do you want to come along, Franziska?"

"Get your foolish, lovesick carcass out of my sight, Miles Edgeworth, and go get a gift for your… equally foolish boyfriend." Came the reply.

"Alright." The man smiled warmly, a sight not seen by many. "Make yourself at home, Franziska. I'll be back shortly."

"Take all the time in your foolish little world, Miles Edgeworth. I'll be right here." The younger prosecutor answered, waving him off as he walked out, letting the front door snap shut behind him. She shook her head. "My compliments to Phoenix Wright. I've never seen someone so thoroughly whipped before."

She allowed herself a small smile at her little joke, before proceeding to pilfer through the drawers of the stand beside her. "And in such a short time as well." She shook her head. It'd only been half a year since she'd left.

She couldn't say she'd really missed being in such a place, as most of the people she'd run across the first time were complete and utter fools. She shook her head again and drew back, sliding the drawer shut. She'd seen quite the bunch of idiots during her short stay, some more memorable than others.

But the last trial she'd been in before leaving… as long as she lived, she'd never forget it. It made her finally wake up and realize that what she was doing was wrong. Before, a guilty verdict was the only thing that mattered to her. Now, what she wanted most when she went into a trial was the truth. This was the conclusion she reached.

Quite a cast of characters were involved in that trial, but one face stuck out the most. A small blonde woman by the name of Adrian Andrews, whose demeanor reminded Franziska of a kicked puppy. Of course, when she first met the woman, it was nothing like that. Everything about her seemed cold, and at once the young prosecutor could tell something was off. Once the whole truth was finally revealed, it made sense.

A gloved hand curled around a fistful of shirt as she thought. She'd consigned that woman to a terrible fate by telling her to lie. And the worst thing was, she'd stuck with Franziska's own directions so much so that Miles had to reveal her deepest secret to the court to break her. All because Franziska herself had to go and get shot. Her shoulder tingled underneath her hand, as if on cue.

The older prosecutor had shattered the other woman's world with one simple statement, and all this time later, it still bothered the younger. If she'd gone about things differently, that wouldn't have had to happen. She wouldn't blame Adrian at all if she hated her, in fact, she expected her to.

She looked up from her thoughts to see Miles in the archway, bag in hand. "You okay, Franziska?" His tone was soft, but he couldn't hide the worry. "Does your shoulder hurt?"

"Yes, yes… I'm fine." Franziska straightened herself up and cleared her throat. "I was just… reminiscing."

A knowing grin appeared on the man's face as he set his bag down on the table. "I see. And here I was, worrying that you'd gotten bored and whipped my house into shape." A whip bit the air in an instant.

"Jokes, Miles Edgeworth." She warned, whip ready to strike again. "Somehow I feel that you're not the same little brother I knew before. You weren't this light-hearted as I remember you. Has he changed you that much?"

"As cheesy as I'm sure it's going to sound, love changes a person, Franziska." He laughed as her whip struck him across the cheek. "But you know…" His face fell. "I almost feel sorry for you, having never known what it's like. You weren't allowed to be human where that man was concerned."

"Let us not speak of father." She replied icily, nestling into the couch rigidly. "I see that you managed to find something."

Miles paused a moment, then nodded. "Yeah, I got the last one." He drew a small heart shaped box from the bag and lifted it into the air. "I was so concerned with getting him something perfect that I didn't even think of the simpler things. Thank you for talking some sense into me."

"That's my job as the big sister, Miles Edgeworth." She rose, curling her whip at her side. "How did you get back so quickly?"

"Ah, well, you know. Everyone's already been out to get their gifts, so most people are at home. Traffic was light." He shrugged.

"I see. I think I'll head out for a walk now. I need to clear my head. Some old wounds have been aching." She plucked the jacket she'd abandoned when they arrived earlier off the coat rack and slipped it over her arms as she spoke.

"Are you sure you're okay?" The man asked as he rose as well. "Do you want me to come with you?"

"Miles Edgeworth, stop worrying so much. I'm fine, as I just told you a moment ago. I just need some air." She rubbed at her temple with one hand and gripped her whip's handle with the other. "If you ask me one more time I'll bite you to death." She threatened, whip raised, as she slammed the door behind her.

"Honestly…" She grumbled to herself as she descended the stairs, adjusting her jacket. "He should know better." She sighed as she rolled the whip in her hand, it always worked to calm her. "I suppose going around the block will be sufficient." She shook her head. Thinking about both Adrian and her father at one time had been too overwhelming.

She observed a shooting star streak across the sky as she started her walk down the quiet street. She knew such a thing to be foolish superstition, but that didn't stop the wheels turning in her mind as she considered what to 'wish' for. "Alright, you foolish streak of light. Surprise me. I wish for some entertainment."

She sighed as she turned a corner, looking up to suddenly be face to face with the one person she had been dreading to see: Adrian Andrews. She blinked a few times and shook her head, just to be sure she wasn't seeing things. Her hair was different, but…

"…Ms. von Karma?" Franziska swallowed thickly when the woman's voice reached her ears. There was no mistaking it now. It was her. Damn that streak of light.

"Adrian Andrews. You look… you look well." She fought to keep the strain out of her voice. She'd jinxed herself for sure by thinking about this a moment ago. Now the only thing to do was to wait for the fallout that was sure to come.

"Th-Thank you. Wow… I-I didn't expect to see you today. What a surprise." Franziska fought with every ounce of her willpower to keep from raising a brow at the slight rosy tinge that was blatantly rising on the other woman's face.

"I could say the same to you." She replied, looking over the blonde. She really did look well, all things considered. But this wasn't how she'd imagined their reunion. She honestly had expected the other woman to be furious, to scream at her for ruining her life, but instead she got this; a timid and blushing Adrian Andrews. It was as if the last few months hadn't happened.

"W-Well… would you like to walk with me? I was going to Mr. Edgeworth's… but since you're going the opposite direction…"

After a pause, Franziska nodded. "I think that would be fine." She resumed her walk alongside the blonde. "Why were you going there, anyway?"

"…I'll tell you about it in a bit." This time, Franziska did raise a brow when the older woman scratched at her neck. The walk fell into silence for a time after that, leaving both women to become absorbed in their own thoughts. The prosecutor couldn't help looking over every so often, to which she was often met with a surprised squeak and the blonde looking the other direction.

After a while, Franziska drew in a deep breath of ice cold air and sighed, looking around. They were nearing a park, that she didn't recall seeing when she and Miles came through earlier. The scenery had passed by so quickly that she hadn't noticed they'd gone so far. She inwardly wondered just how long they'd been walking. "I'm sure you were wondering why I'm here in America."

Adrian jumped and turned her head. "I was, actually. I was just wondering that."

"Miles called me and asked for my help with something. The 'big problem' he had turned out to be his indecision about what to get for Phoenix Wright for Valentine's Day." She finished with a snort. "Big problem…"

"I suppose that would be a big problem… considering that there's hardly any time left." Franziska caught the other woman shifting her bag to her other side.

"What world do you and Miles Edgeworth live in where such a thing is considered a big problem?" She asked, mirroring her earlier question to the man. "And what are you attempting to hide from me, Adrian Andrews?"

The blonde froze, and after a moment sighed deeply, beckoning Franziska to sit on a bench with her. "…you asked me earlier why I was going to Mr. Edgeworth's place." She drew her bag onto her lap and started to rummage around. "W-Well… I had something to give him--"

The prosecutor held up a hand, stopping the other in mid-sentence. "Are you trying to tell me, Adrian Andrews, that you were giving Miles Edgeworth a Valentine present?" Her tone faltered a bit after she said the man's name, as if she were suppressing a laugh.

Adrian flushed even deeper. "N-No, that's not it at all! You didn't let me finish." She swallowed thickly and pulled out a small box not unlike the one Miles had shown earlier. "I… I was giving it to him… to send to you." She half pressed, half threw the box into Franziska's hand and abruptly turned away.

At first, all the prosecutor could do was blink and stare at the box she was holding. The soft music from the small novelty shop across the street echoed through the silence that hung in the air.

Ochite iku sunadokei bakari miteru yo
Sakasama ni sureba hora mata hajimaru yo
Kizanda dake susumu jikan ni
Itsuka boku mo haireru kana

She blinked some more as the words reached her. Japanese music seemed a strange choice for such a shop. It took a few long moments for her brain to cut through her scattered thoughts and catch up to what had just happened. Her face twisted as she replayed the scene in her mind, looking over the small box. Her heart gave a sudden forceful thump as she realized the implication. "You…"

"…when I was in jail, I had a lot of time to think. You tried to help me, Ms. von Karma. I just… I wanted to thank you, but I didn't know how to do it. I wrote a letter to go with that… but since you're here, I can just tell you." Franziska sat dumbstruck as she watched the other woman shift as if she wanted to curl in on herself and disappear.

"I came to terms with things in jail, Ms. von Karma. I have problems, I know, and I've accepted and am trying to move past them. Back then, you didn't care about that, you tried to help me anyway. There wasn't a day of my incarceration that I didn't think about you. I counted the days to my release because I wanted to see you again, so I could tell you this. I don't blame you for what happened. I deserved every bit of what I got. It was my fault, so please don't blame yourself. Please, please don't. I already feel horrible about this whole thing." Her arms wrapped around her own small body in a movement that was familiar to Franziska. She was quite literally trying to hold herself together.

Kimi dake ga sugisatta saka no tochuu wa
Atataka na hidamari ga ikutsu mo dekiteta
Boku hitori ga koko de yasashii
Atatakasa o omoikaeshiteru

The logical part of Franziska wanted to lash out at the woman, to tell her to show some spine, but its opinion was lost behind the music still washing over her, and her heart pounding in her ears. There was someone in the world that cared about her after all. That woman was in jail for god knows just how long, and what was on her mind was the feelings of the prosecutor that had essentially put her there.

She cared about that more than the terrible situation she had been in, and that was more than anyone ever cared about the von Karma heir before. "Thank you." Was all the prosecutor could say, her tone laced with disbelief.

"I won't lie… I owe that much to myself, and to you. I think I've become dependent on you, Ms. von Karma. I should have known it would happen… I know I can't help it, but I thought I'd become a better person after what I've been through. I thought I'd changed, even if it was only a little." The blonde started to shake as she struggled to hold in the sobs.

"I can't stop thinking about you, I can't get you out of my head. I've done nothing short of falling in love with you. I don't know what good I thought telling you would do… you're probably going to hate me now. I'm sorry." She buried her face in her knees.

Kimi dake o kimi dake o
Suki de ita yo
Kaze de me ga nijinde
Tooku naru yo

"I don't…" Franziska shed her coat and placed it around the other woman's shoulders, struggling to regain control of her words. "I don't hate you." The other woman turned and looked at her with tear-filled eyes, to which she sighed.

"Don't cry out here, fool. You'll freeze." She reached her arms out and pulled Adrian into an awkward embrace, pressing her face into her shoulder, hand on the back of her head. Her heart was still thundering what seemed like 100 miles per hour, but this time a solitary thought managed to slip through. Maybe that's why I… couldn't stop thinking about you either.

"Shh. I don't hate you, Adrian Andrews." She repeated, in a softer tone than she'd used in her whole life. "It must have taken a lot for you to tell me that, and I'm… I'm proud of you for being so brave. I don't know that I could have done something like you just did. Especially with your knowing that I'm a bit… ruthless."

She chuckled to herself. Ruthless was an understatement. God only knows what would have happened if she hadn't been going on instinct now. The von Karma that was still in her couldn't take something like this. It was too emotional. "I expected you to hate me. In fact, I find it quite foolish of you not to. But, at the same time… I am… glad… that you don't. The thought of what I'd done to you has haunted me all of this time. So, to hear you say that really takes a weight off my shoulders."

Kimi dake o kimi dake o
Suki de ita yo
Kimi dake to kimi dake to
Utau uta da yo
Boku-tachi no boku-tachi no
Kizanda toki da yo
Katahou dake tsuzuku nante
Boku wa iya da yo

"I couldn't ever hate you, Ms. von Karma. You were so kind to me… and what you're doing now just proves to me that you're still the same person I fell in love with." The other woman replied, though a bit muffled from being pressed into Franziska's shoulder. The clock tower's loud chime echoed through the area as time itself seemed to stop.

"...I'll take that as a compliment." Came the reply, and the younger gave the still shaking blonde a gentle squeeze as she wiped her eyes.

"I'm sorry, really… this is a hell of a thing to hit someone with. I just… it was tearing me apart inside. I had to tell you… one way or another."

"There's no reason to apologize." The prosecutor forced out, face aflame and heartbeat thundering with a new wave of foolish romanticism. "It can't be helped." She lifted Adrian's chin just enough to look into her eyes. "If you've gone and foolishly fallen in love with me, Adrian Andrews…" She held fast as the blonde tried to turn away.

"…Then I will do my best to love you too." She brushed the blonde locks away from the other woman's forehead and pressed her lips to it softly as the clock tower rang for the twelfth time.

Itsu made mo oboeteru
Kono machi ga kawatte mo
Dore dake no kanashimi to deau koto ni natte mo
Misete yaru hontou wa tsuyokatta toki no koto
Saa iku yo arukidasu saka no michi o

Behind a bush across the park, another pair watched, hand in hand as they walked. "Looks like Operation Valentine was a success, Wright."

A hand clad in a brand new blue glove squeezed the prosecutor's, its owner smiling cheerfully, chocolates tucked in the crook of his arm. "Yeah, just as planned."

I caught a couple of references in here I thought I'd point out. Fairly early on, there was a conversation about Phoenix in a hat. That's an obvious bit of amusing foreshadowing. And any fan of Katekyo Hitman Reborn should recognize Franziska's threat as she's heading out for her walk. I didn't mean to put either one in, they just kind of happened. Oh, and there was "Mein gott." which I totally stole from a comic that makes me lol long time. It means just what it sounds like. Just say it a few times and it should click. xD

The song used is the full version of Toki o Kizamu Uta, the opening of Clannad After Story. I ALMOST used Yuragu Koto Nai Ai, the first opening from GetBackers. The tone just seemed off from what I wanted when compared to the first one, though the lyrics of either one are pretty fitting. The first one won out 'cause it's got somewhat of a tender feeling to it, and that's what I wanted.

…I'll stfu and give you the translation now. Note that I did NOT do this translation myself, so I don't know if it's completely correct. But I'm not too concerned with that 'cause either way you get the general message. xD

"I'm only looking at the spilling hourglass
When I turn it upside down, look, it starts up again
I wonder if I'll be able to someday enter
The advancing time that only ticked away

Midway on the slope that only you passed through
Many warm spots of sunshine appeared
Here by myself, I'm reminiscing
About the tender warmth

It's only you, it's only you
Who I loved
My eyes tear up in the wind
And you become distant

It's only you, it's only you
Who I loved
It's a song that I sing
Only with you
It's our time passed together
I don't want to continue on my own

I'll remember forever
Even if this town changes
No matter how much sorrow I'm to encounter
I'll show you when I was truly strong
C'mon, let's go; we'll start walking on this sloped road"